Week 3 Response to Classmate (R2C) #2 Robin
Getting Back In The Driver’s Seat
Link to Robin's Full Action Research Cycle 2 Data Analysis Post
Cycle 2 was a bit of an obstacle course for me.
And that is why you are a teacher and so many other people are not….teachers tackle obstacles and keep trying. Sure we get discouraged but we always find alternative ways to reach kids.
From a qualitative perspective, the technology definitely added to interaction and enthusiasm. The students reacted much differently to the literature this year than in any year prior. They were excited and more engaged in their work, produced better analytical perspectives and became more immersed in the characters and character’s lives/actions than in years before. They synthesized information better and created more intellectual discussions as a result.
So there you have it, you earned your A! You know you made an impact, the discussions proved it.
The day will come when students know plenty of digital tools and they will be able to pick their favorite tool to create the product you request. As technology continues to fail or get blocked at school, I believe more and more educators will encourage kids to create at home and present and discuss at school. Soon it will be commonplace for students to create several movies in a week for all different kinds of classes.
The question becomes will you be brave enough to check out the cameras to students for the weekend? With proper insurance I believe it will be possible (remember www.safeware.com). And of course the next leap will be that students will use their own cell phones to take and create it all.
I enjoyed the posted student examples and know you will create an excellent student gallery, in the future, of creative responses to all the great works of literature your students study in your classes.
Week 3 Response to Classmate (R2C) #1 Billy
@Billy
How important is online content delivery or personal learning environments to your Action Research project?
As a sort of part b to my second cycle, students demonstrated the process of uploading images and videos to their classroom web pages. For the teachers involved in this cycle, this was a significant achievement and the first step in delivering content outside the traditional lecture method. During team and school wide meetings, I hear and see teachers sharing lessons they’ve created or other resources they’ve found online. I also hear about tricks and shortcuts for different computer applications or how to connect a peripheral device to the computer. In these moments, I smile quietly knowing most of the items shared came from my group of students. All of these skills and discussions are in and of themselves very small, but they are evidence of teacher confidence and technology integrations.
I remember the Internet as a set of text-based bulletin boards. Then came ASCII art, pictures, and videos, continually changing and leading to the tools now available in a LMO. Similarly, I think the process will be the same for many classroom teachers when it comes to creating an online learning environment from text to media to online learning.
You smile when you recognize progress in technology integration brought upon by your students, your students smile when they know they taught a “digital immigrant” teacher something new, and the teacher smiles after the new technology works in their classroom. How powerful you are to be in charge of new smiles! Your AR project successfully demonstrated a need and a practical solution, congratulations.
My AR project led to a similar conclusion, that kids are the best technology instructors working one on one with teachers. After the success of my AR Summer Technology Seminar, I was granted a Science and Technology Elective class. I have thirty Tech Toads in training. Their first clients were the immersion students. The Tech Toads taught the immersion kids how to use Google Translate and to create a Voki that can be translated. There were smiles across the room after that first Tech Toad session. Next up, the Tech Toads will seek out a teacher to train. Your club is a great vehicle of change that could turn into a valuable tech elective in the future.
Week 3 (R2R) THE ART OF POSSIBILITY
Being a Contribution
Zander from The Art of Possibility
At the beginning of the school year the students in my class are nervous when I say “Everybody up” but by the end of the year they are at ease and look forward to presenting their contribution in front of the class. Contribute is the second of my three class rules and yes, I do agree with the Zanders that the contribution game does have remarkable powers.
I have never had a student come up to me and say that another student did not deserve an A for their contribution because it was less work than their work. Kids recognize and accept that certain kids have to work harder to contribute and can appreciate their limitations. Connections kids make with each other as they contribute are powerful and often lead to more conversations. “You brought your water sample from the fish hatchery, you know I used to live out there…”
Currently we are planning our genetics fair where kids research their genetics of their pets or zoo animals. Some students choose to contribute to the class experience by bringing in their pets and explaining their genetics. I have had everything from horses, to cats, to dogs, to goats, to chickens at school. One student taught the class about dominant curly haired guinea pigs and recessive straight haired guinea pigs. The genetics of the thoroughbred and the quarter horse were evident and matched the personalities of their owners.
Last year a family brought their alpacas to school and over three hundred kids learned about alpaca genetics; that was an amazing contribution from a local family. It was a day for their shy son to shine and share his expertise about alpacas. His greatest contribution that day was sharing his gentle alpacas with the learning disabled kids. No, they did not understand the genetics but they got the thrill of petting a soft alpaca.
Last year a family brought their alpacas to school and over three hundred kids learned about alpaca genetics; that was an amazing contribution from a local family. It was a day for their shy son to shine and share his expertise about alpacas. His greatest contribution that day was sharing his gentle alpacas with the learning disabled kids. No, they did not understand the genetics but they got the thrill of petting a soft alpaca.
Photo courtesy of Jasmin
And for the kids who do not have a pet to contribute they created extra special power point presentations about zoo animals and their breeding programs. Many of the penguins in zoos around the world come from our local San Diego Sea World.
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MAC Snack 101 Week 3 Free Choice
MAC Snack 101 Week 3 Free Choice
It Takes All Kinds of Minds
We must find a place in society for all kids.
Image by Laurie Merrill software: Inspiration
It is time we learn to celebrate the fact that minds work differently. Every student has something to contribute and it is our job as their teacher to find a way to tap their strengths and develop them. I have a school garden where kids excel and prove they can work hard to create something using earth instead of paper. The yeast feast allows other students to excel.
Movie making and podcasting will open new avenues for students. One current student who has difficulty writing, loses his train of thought because he writes too slowly, will be offered the freedom to podcast from his cell phone for science and use voice recognition software to text from his phone. The technology is here to implement individualized instruction for every student, we just need to restructure our schools to make it happen.
Listen to Temple Grandin Explain Her Unique Autistic Mind on NPR Fresh Air
A treatment method or an educational method that will work for one child may not work for another child. The one common denominator for all of the young children is that early intervention does work, and it seems to improve the prognosis.
Temple Grandin
And while we are on the subject of medication you always need to look at risk versus benefit.
Temple Grandin
As you may know, some of the stereotyped behaviors exhibited by autistic children are also found in zoo animals who are raised in a barren environment.
Temple Grandin
Autism is an extremely variable disorder.
Temple Grandin
Children between the ages of five to ten years are even more variable. They are going to vary from very high functioning, capable of doing normal school work, to nonverbal who have all kinds of neurological problems.
Temple Grandin
I am a big believer in early intervention.
Temple Grandin
I am also a believer in an integrated treatment approach to autism.
Temple Grandin
I can remember the frustration of not being able to talk. I knew what I wanted to say, but I could not get the words out, so I would just scream.
Temple Grandin
I cannot emphasize enough the importance of a good teacher.
Temple Grandin
I have been on the same dose of anti-depressants for 15 years, and my nerves still go up and down in cycles; but my nerves are cycling at a lower level than they were before.
Temple Grandin
I know a number of autistic adults that are doing extremely well on Prozac.
Temple Grandin
I like to figure things out and solve problems.
Temple Grandin
I obtain great satisfaction out of using my intellect.
Temple Grandin
I use my mind to solve problems and invent things.
Temple Grandin
I would not be here now if I did not have anti-depressants.
Temple Grandin
If I did not have my work, I would not have any life.
Temple Grandin
If you start using a medication in a person with autism, you should see an obvious improvement in behavior in a short period of time. If you do not see an obvious improvement, they probably should not be taking the stuff. It is that simple.
Temple Grandin
My life is basically my work.
Temple Grandin
One of my sensory problems was hearing sensitivity, where certain loud noises, such as a school bell, hurt my ears. It sounded like a dentist drill going through my ears.
Temple Grandin
People are always looking for the single magic bullet that will totally change everything. There is no single magic bullet.
Temple Grandin
Pressure is calming to the nervous system.
Temple Grandin
Research has shown that a barren environment is much more damaging to baby animals than it is to adult animals. It does not hurt the adult animals the same way it damages babies.
Temple Grandin
Research is starting to show that a child should be engaged at least 20 hours a week. I do not think it matters which program you choose as long as it keeps the child actively engaged with the therapist, teacher, or parent for at least 20 hours a week.
Temple Grandin
Some autistic children cannot stand the sound of certain voices. I have come across cases where teachers tell me that certain children have problems with their voice or another person's voice. This problem tends to be related to high-pitched ladies' voices.
Temple Grandin
Some children may need a behavioral approach, whereas other children may need a sensory approach.
Temple Grandin
Some teachers just have a knack for working with autistic children. Other teachers do not have it.
Temple Grandin
The squeeze machine is not going to cure anybody, but it may help them relax; and a relaxed person will usually have better behavior.
Temple Grandin
There is a tremendous range of children with a PDD label.
Temple Grandin
We have got to work on keeping these children engaged with the world.
Temple Grandin
When you take a drug to treat high blood pressure or diabetes, you have an objective test to measure blood pressure and the amount of sugar in the blood. It is straight-forward. With autism, you are looking for changes in behavior.
Temple Grandin
You have got to keep autistic children engaged with the world. You cannot let them tune out.
Temple Grandin
Humane Treatment of Animals Designed by Temple Grandin
Figure 2: Round crowd pen and curved race system for handling cattle
Purchase HBO DVD Temple Grandin
TED Talk Temple Grandin
